Jobseeker's Allowance

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answers of 26 November 2008,  Official Report, column 1997W, on jobseeker's allowance, what research analysis his Department has undertaken on the proportion of time jobseeker's allowance claimants spent  (a) on benefits and  (b) not on benefits or in work over a set period of time, including claimants with more than one benefit claim in the last five years.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 15 December 2008
	The published research available is in the Department for Work and Pensions Research Report No. 394, 'Repeat Jobseeker's Allowance Spells by Hannah Carpenter' (a copy of which has been placed in the Library), which found that 54 per cent. of people who claimed jobseeker's allowance between July 2003 and June 2004 were repeat claimants. They had spent an average one year out of the previous four on jobseeker's allowance, although the length of spells on benefit varied widely. A quarter of repeat claimants had been on other benefits in the previous four years.

Departmental Data Protection

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of contractors and suppliers to  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies has reported compliance with the Government's security standards following publication of the report, Data Handling Procedures in Government, and the accompanying document, Cross-departmental Actions: Mandatory Minimum Action, on 25 June 2008.

Jonathan R Shaw: Data security is taken very seriously by the Department and is a key priority for its commercial team who are in regular contact with its suppliers and contractors at both senior managerial and operational levels. The Department has incorporated the new Office of Government Commerce model contract clauses relating to data security into new contracts. All relevant suppliers have been informed of the requirements. 98 per cent. of suppliers have confirmed that they are fully compliant. The Department is actively working with the remaining suppliers and has action plans in place to achieve 100 per cent. compliance.

Departmental Data Protection

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2009,  Official Report, column 24W, on departmental data protection, what the names of the  (a) Senior Information Risk Owner and  (b) Information Asset Owners are.

Jonathan R Shaw: The names of the Department's  (a) Senior Information Risk Owner, and  (b) Information Asset Owners, are as follows.
	 (a) Senior Information Risk Owner: R. Heaton.
	 (b) Information Asset Owners: N. Cheetham; J. Doherty; S. Furse; R. Ginn; P. Greening; S. McKinnon-Evans; R. Molan; J. Oliver; H. Orme; J. Perryer; K. Roberts; D. Smith; M. Whitehouse.

Departmental Manpower

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the Answer of 17 July 2008,  Official Report, column 640W, on departmental personnel, how many staff without posts there are in  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies; how many staff without posts were classified as such upon return from maternity leave; and how many of the staff without posts have been classified as such for at least (i) six and (ii) 12 months.

Jonathan R Shaw: As at 31 December 2008 there were 301 members of staff, in the Department for Work and Pensions, who were without a permanent post. The following table shows the number of staff in each business area of the Department. The table also details the numbers of staff who have been without a permanent post for more than six months and of that number those who have been without a permanent post for more than 12 months.
	
		
			  Agency/business area  Staff without a permanent post  For at least  six  months  For at least 12 months 
			 Jobcentre Plus 252 122 105 
			 Pensions, Disability and Carer Services 14 8 4 
			 Rest of the Department 35 9 4 
			 Total 301 139 113 
		
	
	The number of these staff who had returned from maternity leave is not held centrally and would be available only at disproportionate cost.
	Staff without permanent posts are actively engaged in delivering a range of departmental projects and duties, while seeking a new permanent position. They are given priority for posts in this Department and other Government Departments.
	The Child Support Agency, figures for which were included in the response of 17 July 2008, transferred to the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission on 1 November 2008. At that time, there were no staff in the agency without permanent posts.

Departmental Official Hospitality

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost of the dinner hosted by his Department at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool on 20 November 2008 was, broken down by category of cost.

Andy Burnham: holding answer 22 January 2009
	 The cost of the event at the Walker Art Gallery was £5,550.

Tourism

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what the cost of  (a) venue hire,  (b) travel expenses and  (c) food and drink was for the tourism summit hosted by his Department in Liverpool on 8 January 2009;
	(2)  what the cost to his Department was of the tourism summit in Liverpool on 8 January.

Barbara Follett: holding answer  2 2 January 2009
	 The estimated total costs to the Department for Culture Media and Sport of the tourism summit in Liverpool on 8 January is £7,745.01.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to the Answer of 21 May 2008,  Official Report, column 329W, on apprentices, what progress has been made on increasing the number of apprentices in his Department; and how many apprentices his Department employed at the latest date for which figures are available.

Michael Foster: In line with the Skills Strategy—Next Steps, the Department for International Development (DFID) has committed to putting in place five apprenticeships for each of the next two years. The Department currently has no apprenticeships under way.

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to his Answer of 11 November 2008,  Official Report, column 986, on departmental conditions of employment, what the  (a) highest,  (b) lowest,  (c) mean and  (d) total amount was spent on (i) travel and (ii) other expenses for those who took their (A) two week break in home country and (B) two week break outside their home country in each year since 2005.

Michael Foster: Employees working in Iraq and Afghanistan are entitled to a two week break away from post for every six weeks worked.
	DFID will only cover the cost of one return flight to the UK for each breather break. If employees wish to spend a break at an alternative location they must cover any additional costs, above the equivalent of the return ticket to the UK, themselves.
	Employees are not reimbursed for other expenses incurred during the breather break.

Departmental Training

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to the answer of 5 November 2008,  Official Report, column 510W, on departmental training, what personal training courses at public expense other Ministers in his Department have undertaken since 1 January 2008.

Michael Foster: Other Ministers in the Department for International Development have taken the following personal training courses at public expense since 1 January 2008:
	Public Communications.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many incidents of theft of British military equipment supplies during transit from the port of disembarkation in Pakistan to the final destination in Afghanistan have been reported since 18 July 2008.

John Hutton: Two incidents of theft of British military supplies during transit from the port of disembarkation in Pakistan to the final destination in Afghanistan have been reported to the Royal Military Police between 18 July 2008 and 26 January 2009 inclusive.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 26 January 2009,  Official Report, column 23W, on Afghanistan: peacekeeping operations 
	(1)  how long the training will take; and what personnel will be involved in the training;
	(2)  where the training of personnel will take place;
	(3)  what aspects of the flying training will be conducted.

John Hutton: The aspects of flying training to be conducted will be appropriate to the environmental and operational conditions in Afghanistan.
	The training of RAF Merlin Force air and ground crew will take place in the UK (at RAF Benson, on Salisbury Plain and other UK training areas), with some elements likely to be overseas as part of a rolling programme prior to deployment.
	Much of the theatre-specific preparation will need to take place during the four month period between completion of deployment to Iraq and commencement of deployment to Afghanistan; but some elements of training may commence earlier.
	I am withholding further details as their disclosure would, or would likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.

Armed Forces: Deployment

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) endorsed number,  (b) actual number and  (c) location was of all UK personnel deployed on operations on 1 January 2009.

Bob Ainsworth: The endorsed force levels for UK military operations are set out in the following table by location.
	
		
			  Location  Endorsed number (at 1 January 2009)( 1) 
			 Afghanistan(2) 8,050 
			 Southern Iraq 4,100 
			 Baghdad(3) 250 
			 At sea 1,050 
			 Falklands/South Atlantic 1,500 
			 Qatar 700 
			 Cyprus 300 
			 Kuwait 550 
			 Kosovo 150 
			 Bahrain 50 
			 Bosnia <50 
			 Other(4) 100 
			 (1 )Rounded to 50 (2) On 15 December 2008, the Prime Minister announced a temporary increase in the number of British troops deployed to Afghanistan, from just over 8,050 to 8,300,  Official Report, column 816. The endorsed figure for Operation Herrick 9 remains unaffected. (3) Providing support to the Senior British Military Representative—Iraq. (4 )Small scale deployments in support of EU and UN missions, and headquarters liaison officers. 
		
	
	The precise number of personnel in each theatre at any one time fluctuates very significantly on a daily basis for a variety of reasons, including mid-tour rest and recuperation, temporary absence for training, evacuation for medical reasons, the roulement of forces, visits and a range of other factors. We do not therefore publish actual figures for personnel deployed in theatre.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Ridgeback armoured vehicles have been shipped to  (a) Afghanistan and  (b) Iraq since 2001.

Quentin Davies: No Ridgback vehicles have yet been shipped to Iraq or Afghanistan.
	Delivery to Afghanistan is due to begin later this year and there are no plans to deploy Ridgback to Iraq.

Defence: Expenditure

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 11 December 2008,  Official Report, columns 65-7WS, on defence equipment, what assessment he has made of the savings from the equipment budget required to be made in the 2009 planning round; and which programmes are being examined for savings.

John Hutton: As part of the Department's normal planning round we review the full scope of our future equipment programme, alongside other elements of the defence programme, so that judgments can be made on overall priorities and balance of investment to maximise defence capability within the available resources. In my written statement on 11 December 2008,  Official Report, columns 65-7WS, I informed Parliament about the major decisions emerging from our examination of the equipment programme and indicated that any further significant changes would be announced following the conclusion of the planning round.

Departmental Manpower

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Rochford and Southend East of 7 October 2008,  Official Report, column 608W, on departmental manpower, how many staff in his Department and its agencies are in the redeployment pool; how many of them were placed in the pool after returning from maternity leave; and how many of them have been in the pool for at least  (a) six months and  (b) 12 months.

Kevan Jones: As at 21 January 2009 there were 886 MOD staff in the Redeployment Pool.
	The Department's automated records do not facilitate ready identification of the number of those in the pool who were placed there on their return from maternity leave. This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	346 staff have been in the pool for at least six months and, of those, 214 have been in the pool for at least 12 months.

Detainee Numbers

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will update the figures given on detainee numbers as set out in his letter of 17 November 2008 to the right hon. Member for North East Hampshire; and if he will make a statement

John Hutton: I will shortly be updating the House on this issue.

Iraq: Peacekeeping Operations

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 26 January 2009,  Official Report, column 35W, on Iraq: peace keeping operations, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of co-operation between his Department and the Department for International Development on conflict prevention immediately prior to the invasion of Iraq.

John Hutton: Prior to the invasion of Iraq, the Ministry of Defence and the Department for International Development (DfID) worked together on planning for Operation TELIC, including on humanitarian and reconstruction issues, and in other areas of stabilisation and conflict prevention. The House of Commons Defence Committee recognised in its report, 'Lessons of Iraq', published on 16 March 2004, that DfID was a 'key player' in planning for the post-conflict situation in Iraq. This close co-operation has continued ever since.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to the answer of 26 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 1742-43W, on Afghanistan: peacekeeping operations, how he plans to inform the House of the implications of the Afghan review; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 12 January 2009
	As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced to the House on 3 December 2008,  Official Report, columns 28-29, a review of the Government's Afghanistan policy is under way, involving the Ministry of Defence, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Development, and reporting to the Prime Minister. Once completed, the findings and implications of the review will be announced to the House.

Brazil

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many times Ministers of the government of Brazil have visited the UK in an official capacity since 2001.

Gillian Merron: Foreign and Commonwealth office records show that visits by Brazilian Government Ministers to the UK since 2001 include President Luis Ignacio Lula da Silva, who made a state visit to the UK in 2006, and also visited in 2003, the Brazilian Foreign Minister, Secretary of the Treasury, and the Ministers Agriculture, Development, Planning, Finance and Justice.
	We do not hold comprehensive records on visits by Ministers of the Brazilian Government organised or facilitated by other Government Departments since 2001.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many  (a) meetings,  (b) telephone calls and  (c) e-mails has he had with the Israeli ambassador since 27 December 2008.

Bill Rammell: I have met ambassador Prossor on several occasions during this period. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has been in direct regular communication with Foreign Minister Livni and Defence Minister Barak.

Sudan: Peace Negotiations

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of progress made by the technical ad hoc border committee in delineating the 1 January 1956 border in Sudan as mandated by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.

Gillian Merron: The work of the Technical Ad hoc Border Committee is severely delayed and its report, which under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) was due by July 2005, has not yet been submitted to the presidency.
	Defining and demarcating the North-South border remains one of the key obstacles to implementation of the CPA. We are fully engaged with both parties and international partners to secure full implementation of the CPA.

Council Tax: Valuation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 15 July 2008,  Official Report, column 228W, on council tax: valuation, what payments from the public purse have been made to  (a) CapGemini,  (b) SAS and  (c) Cole Layer Trumbie/Tyler Technologies for work on the council tax banding support tool.

Stephen Timms: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on 6 October 2008,  Official Report, column 370W.

Departmental Video Recordings

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 14 July 2008,  Official Report, columns 5150-51W, on the Valuation Office: video recordings, what training videos or digital equivalents for council tax valuation work his Department uses.

Stephen Timms: Training videos or digital equivalents are not used within the VOA's programmes of structured learning for council tax valuation work.

EU Grants and Loans

Peter Kilfoyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reasons his Department declined to accept an extension on spending deadlines for England for European structural funding in England; what estimate he has made of the amount of money under such structural funding provisions for England which was unspent at 31 December 2008; whether the extension will be accepted in relation to spending in  (a) Scotland,  (b) Wales and  (c) Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: Responsibility for structural fund programmes, including eligibility extensions, lies with the appropriate Government Departments (DCLG, DEFRA, DWP) and devolved Administrations.

Housing: Valuation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 7 May 2008,  Official Report, columns 912-3W, on housing: valuation, what the definition of a live locality is.

Stephen Timms: A 'live' locality is one that is currently in use.

Official Cars

Bob Spink: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what cars are  (a) owned,  (b) leased,  (c) hired and  (d) otherwise regularly used by his Department, broken down by cubic capacity of engine.

Angela Eagle: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport (Mr. Hoon) on 26 January 2009,  Official Report, column 10W, about cars provided by the Government Car and Despatch Agency.

Planning Permission

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Beckenham of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, column 378W, on planning permission, what planning applications were made by his Department between 1997-98 and 2001-02; and for what purpose in each case.

Angela Eagle: I would refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 July 2008,  Official Report, column 717W, to the right hon. Member for Horsham (Mr. Maude).

Valuation Office

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 24 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 963W, on Valuation Office: handbooks, if he will place in the Library a copy of the most recent editions of  (a) Introduction to Inspections,  (b) CT Referencers Manual,  (c) Digital Mapping User Guide,  (d) Rating Support Application Induction Workbook,  (e) NDR Referencers Manual and  (f) Digital Photography User Guide.

Stephen Timms: A copy of the Valuation Office Agency's Introduction to Inspections Workbook, CT Referencers Manual and NDR Referencers Manual will be placed in the Library.
	The Digital Mapping User Guide, RSA Induction Workbook and Digital Photography User Guide are technical instructions on the use of Valuation Office Agency internal IT applications. It is not appropriate to publish information which might assist unauthorised access to VOA systems or databases.

Valuation Office

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  with reference to the answer of 14 July 2008,  Official Report, column 138W, on council tax: valuation, if he will place in the Library a copy of each of the user guides and manuals for  (a) the digital mapping tool and  (b) the locality delineation tool;
	(2)  if he will place in the Library a copy of the user guide for the Valuation Office Agency's automated valuation model software and database.

Stephen Timms: No. These guidance manuals are technical instructions on the use of Valuation Office Agency internal IT applications. It is not appropriate to publish information which might assist unauthorised access to VOA systems or databases.

Valuation Office

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 17 March 2008,  Official Report, column 989W, on the Valuation Office, at what intervals the Valuation Office Agency's automated valuation model is calibrated.

Stephen Timms: There are no set intervals for calibrating the models.

Valuation Office: Cole Layer Trumble

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 19 March 2008,  Official Report, column 1218W, on Cole Layer Trumble, how much has been spent on payments to Cole Layer Trumble/Tyler Technologies funded via the public purse  (a) directly from the Valuation Office Agency,  (b) directly from HM Revenue and Customs and  (c) indirectly via CapGemini under the ASPIRE contract since February 2007.

Stephen Timms: Unfortunately, the answer of 19 March 2008 was inaccurate in so far as the second payment quoted was made in the period from April 2007 to the end of February 2008 (not February 2007). Since February 2008, further payments to Cole Layer Trumble/Tyler Technologies have totalled £14,587. All figures exclude non-recoverable VAT.

Valuation Office: Digital Technology

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 14 July 2008,  Official Report, columns 150-51W, on the Valuation Office: cameras, for what work the 690 cameras purchased in 2007-08 were required.

Stephen Timms: Cameras are required to support property valuation work undertaken by the Valuation Office Agency.

Valuation Office: Geographic Information Systems

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 19 March 2008,  Official Report, column 1226W, on Valuation Office: ICT, whether the Valuation Office Agency's Geographic Information System will assist with the utilisation of locality adjustment factors within the automated valuation model.

Stephen Timms: The Valuation Office Agency's proposed geographic information system will be used to define and/or show on a map the localities to which dwellings are allocated for the purposes of automated valuation modelling. Adjustment factors are attributed to these localities in the modelling process.

Valuation Office: Geographic Information Systems

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 21 April 2008,  Official Report, columns 1688-89W, on Valuation Office: Geographical Information Systems, how mapping data from Ordnance Survey will be integrated into the proposed Geographical Information System; and whether it will be used to assess the value significance of particular property attributes.

Stephen Timms: It is proposed that mapping data from Ordnance Survey will be loaded into the proprietary Geographic Information System (GIS) software. GIS will be one of a number of tools used by valuers to assist in assessing the impact of features that may affect the value of property.

Valuation Office: Land Registry

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 25 November 2008,  Official Report, column 1317W, on Valuation Office: Land Registry, whether the Valuation Office Agency uses the Land Registry Direct Service for  (a) council tax valuation purposes and  (b) populating the automated valuation model with property data.

Stephen Timms: The majority of data used by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) for  (a) council tax purposes and  (b) populating the automated valuation models is drawn from stamp duty land tax information. The Land Registry Direct Service has not been used as a matter of course but is a further source of information; its availability to the VOA is identical to any other public or private body.

Valuation Office: Rightmove

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what the  (a) minimum and  (b) maximum duration is of the renewed contract between the Valuation Office Agency, HM Revenue and Customs and Rightmove; and on what date the new contract was signed;
	(2)  with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield of 24 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 964W, on Valuation Office: Rightmove, upon what terms the extension to the contract with Rightmove was agreed; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the new contract, redacting commercially sensitive elements.

Stephen Timms: A redacted copy of the contract extension and variation to the original contract, both signed on 20 November 2008, will be placed in the Library of the House.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer of 22 May 2008,  Official Report, column 410W, on apprentices, what progress has been made on increasing the number of apprentices in his Department; and how many apprentices his Department employed at the latest date for which figures are available.

Michael Wills: Since May 2008, the Ministry of Justice has been working with skills sector councils to promote apprenticeships across a range of subjects to all MOJ employees. The number of people currently employed undertaking apprenticeships is 364. The following table gives a breakdown of these by subject.
	
		
			  Apprenticeship title  Number 
			 Customer Service 212 
			 Business and Administration 59 
			 Management 53 
			 Team Leader 16 
			 IT 10 
			 Community Justice 1 
			 Accounting 1 
			 Data Analysis 1 
			   
			 Total 353 
		
	
	Additionally 11 participants are taking part in the in the Civil Service West Midlands Apprenticeship pilot scheme, working towards Management and Team Leader Apprenticeships.

Bail Accommodation and Support Services: Milton Keynes

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  when he expects the second bail hostel planned for Milton Keynes to be operational; and what its capacity will be;
	(2)  what the capacity of the bail hostel in Milton Keynes is.

David Hanson: I take the hon. Member to be referring to the accommodation and support service for bail and Home Detention Curfew provided to NOMS by ClearSprings. The service does not provide hostels. There is currently one property in Milton Keynes with three places. A second three bed-roomed property is being sought. It is not possible to predict by when a property will be found and brought into use.

Departmental Manpower

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Rochford and Southend East, of 13 October 2008,  Official Report, columns 870-1W, on departmental manpower, how many  (a) staff without posts and  (b) staff classified as priority movers there are in his Department and its agencies; how many of the staff without posts were classified as such after returning from maternity leave; and how many of the staff without posts have been classified as such for at least (a) six months and (b) 12 months.

Michael Wills: There are less than five people that are classified as staff without posts in the Department so this information is withheld on grounds of confidentiality.
	There are 126 permanent staff classified as priority movers within the Ministry of Justice. The figure comprises both full-time and part-time staff. All are actively in employment. However, due to business reasons, for example, restructuring, relocation, closure of offices/courts, the end of projects/secondments etc, their substantive posts have come to or are potentially coming to an end.
	There are no staff who after returning from maternity leave have been classified as without posts, nor are there any staff without posts who have been classified as such for at least six or 12 months. Of the 126 permanent staff that are currently classified as priority movers, less than 10 have been in this category for at least six months and less than 15 for at least 12 months.

Departmental Official Residences

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Rochford and Southend East of 17 November 2008,  Official Report, column 19W, on departmental official residences, whether the council tax bills for  (a) HM Courts Service and  (b) HM Prison Service residential accommodation are paid from public funds; and what his Department's policy is on whether the proposed new charges for the collection of household waste will be funded by the public purse or personally by the occupying staff member.

David Hanson: For Judges Lodgings the council tax bills for residential properties held by HM Courts Service (occupied by judges' lodgings managers and court keepers/custodians), are paid for by the individual resident staff who pay rental for their occupation. HMCS does not meet the cost from the public funds.
	HM Courts Service has not yet decided on the policy that it will adopt to recover the proposed new charges in respect of the collection of household waste. Where charges may accrue in respect of household waste, HMCS may look to the individual to meet the cost (as in the case of recovering rent), but this would be considered against the actual amount due and the time and cost to recover same.
	Staff that occupy National Offender Management Service provided residential accommodation (most commonly known as prison officer quarters) are liable for all local taxes. No consideration has been given to meeting any new local taxes from the public purse.

Departmental Public Consultation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Dundee East of 30 April 2008,  Official Report, columns 511-14W, on departmental public participation, if he will place in the Library a copy of each of the non-confidential individual responses to the 2007 bailiff regulation document.

Bridget Prentice: 414 readable responses were received following the publication of the 2007 Bailiff regulation document. An analysis of these responses was undertaken and a report was published in March 2008. A copy of this report has been placed in the Library. It is our intention to place in the Library a copy of all 414 readable responses to this paper by the 16 February 2009.

Fraud: Elections

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer of 7 January 2008,  Official Report, column 150W, on fraud: elections, what progress has been made on the Government's plans to bring forward further legislation to implement its policy on requiring valid signatures for the issue of ballot papers in polling stations.

Michael Wills: The Government continue to consider how this measure could most effectively be implemented. We must ensure, however, that any approach to this issue is aligned with other reforms to the registration and electoral processes.

Freedom of Information

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer of 7 January 2008,  Official Report, column 151W, on Freedom of Information Act 2000, which  (a) regional chambers and  (b) proposed local authority leaders' boards will be subject to the provisions of the Act.

Michael Wills: If approved by both Houses, provisions within the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill (currently before the House) will disband regional chambers and replace them with local authority leaders' boards. There is currently no provision in the Bill to bring local authority leaders' board within the scope of the Freedom of Information Act. However, this matter will be given further consideration in due course.

Government Departments: Public Relations

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  with reference to the answer of 17 November 2008,  Official Report, House of Lords, column 166WA, on Government departments: public relations, for what reasons his Department's communications staff were not used to mount the campaign to increase public awareness of the Mental Capacity Act;
	(2)  with reference to the answer to the right hon. Member for Devizes of 26 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 1670-71W, on departmental public relations, which external public relations consultancies received a portion of the £290,476 referred to; how much each received; and for what purpose the payment was made in each case;
	(3)  with reference to the answer to the right hon. Member for Devizes of 26 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 1670-1W, on departmental public relations, on which public relations consultancies the expenditure was incurred; how much was spent on each; and for what purpose.

Bridget Prentice: The campaign to increase public awareness of the Mental Capacity Act was devised by the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) with advice and professional support from Ministry of Justice's Communications Directorate. The campaign was national in scope but needed to be targeted to reach particular people and organisations for which the Mental Capacity Act would have an impact and provide benefits. An external agency was used as the resource did not exist in the OPG, and the MOJ Communications Directorate could not dedicate sufficient resource to run such a campaign. Procuring an external agency to deliver the time-limited campaign also meant that the OPG did not have to hire extra staff and so exceed headcount limits.
	The £290,476 referred to in the answer to the right hon. and learned Member for Devizes (Mr. Ancram) in November 2008 is broken down as follows;
	
		
			£ 
			 Four Communications and HBL Media Human Rights campaign 45,728 
			 Four Communications City of London planning application 1,880 
			 Amazon PR Family Mediation helpline and Mental Capacity Act 58,400 
			 Good Relations CJS Speedy, Simple, Summary programme and Weekly media and public affairs reports 71,978 
			 Leapfrog PR Liverpool Community Justice Centre 29,616 
			 Hopwood PR Leicester Community Justice Centre 49,255 
			 Red Consultancy Community Sentencing 33,619

Prisoners Release

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners have been released on end-of-custody licence since 29 June 2007; how many of those were foreign nationals; and how many such prisoners have re-offended while on licence.

Jack Straw: Between 29 June 2007 and 31 December 2008, the latest date for which information is available, there were 47,515 prisoners released under the end of custody licence scheme. Those foreign national prisoners who either have no lawful basis upon which to remain in the UK or will be subject to deportation at the end of their sentence are not eligible for release under the end of custody licence (ECL) scheme.
	The Government have made it clear that they will seek to remove or deport those foreign nationals who commit crimes in the UK and meet the relevant criteria. Of the 47,515 prisoners who were released under the end of custody licence scheme, less than 6 per cent. of these were foreign national prisoners. Internal management information also shows that less than 1 per cent. of those foreign national prisoners who were released under the scheme were later convicted of a further offence during their period of end of custody licence.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisoners Transfers

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost of transferring prisoners  (a) from one prison to another and  (b) to and from court was in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: Details of the costs of transferring prisoners to one prison from another in England and Wales using the inter prison transfer contract are held by financial year and are set out in the following table:
	
		
			   Cost of inter prison transfers  (£ million) 
			 2003-04 5.64 
			 2004-05 5.79 
			 2005-06 5.97 
			 2006-07 7.38 
			 2007-08 7.64 
		
	
	Since August 2004 the contracts for the escort of prisoners have included a separate payment for every prisoner journey undertaken. The payment covers vehicle and staff costs. Details of these payments for escorting prisoners to and from courts in England and Wales are available by calendar year from 2005 and are set out in the following table.
	
		
			   Cost of escorting prisoners to and from courts (£ million) 
			 2005 53.32 
			 2006 55.99 
			 2007 59.17 
			 2008 61.80 
		
	
	The figures include the cost of all prisoner journeys in the London and south east contract area as to separate the escort of prisoners from police stations to prisons from the invoiced total could be achieved only at disproportionate cost.
	Incorrect figures for the cost of escorting prisoners to and from courts were previously given in answer to the hon. Member for Harborough on 31 January 2008,  Official Report, column 572W.

Television: Licensing

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people per 10,000 of the population in each region of the UK were prosecuted for non-payment of television licence fees in each of the last three years.

Maria Eagle: Information on the number of persons per 10,000 of the population proceeded against for television licence evasion in England and Wales from 2005 to 2007 (latest available), broken down by region is in the following table. Information data held by the Ministry of Justice only covers England and Wales.
	The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
	
		
			  Number of persons per 10,000 of the population proceeded against for television licence evasion in England and Wales, 2005 to 2007, broken down by region( 1, 2) 
			   2005  2006  2007 
			  Region  Proceeded against  Proceedings per 10,000 of the population  Proceeded against  Proceedings per 10,000 of the population  Proceeded against  Proceedings per 10,000 of the population 
			 East of England 5,040 9 9,642 17 9,152 16 
			 East Midlands 8,904 21 9,221 21 10,537 24 
			 London 23,508 32 19,219 26 22,780 30 
			 North East 5,820 23 9,407 37 8,455 33 
			 North West 28,159 41 27,148 40 26,662 39 
			 South East 8,707 11 8,802 11 9,786 12 
			 South West 7,095 14 7,615 15 8,137 16 
			 Wales 8,576 29 10,460 35 10,073 34 
			 West Midlands 12,041 23 14,233 27 15,154 28 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 15,073 30 14,272 28 14,871 29 
			 England and Wales 122,923 23 130,019 24 135,607 25 
			 (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit, Office for Criminal Justice Reform.

Valuation Office: Land Registry

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer of 7 January 2008,  Official Report, columns 153W, on Land Registry Direct, what property data the Land Registry Direct Service provides to the Valuation Office Agency.

Michael Wills: The Valuation Office Agency will be able to obtain the same information as any other users of Land Registry's services, whether they are in the public or private sector. As users of Land Registry Direct the Valuation Office Agency will have access to our register. The Land Register has been available for public inspection since December 1990 and Official Copies of registers, title plans and deeds and most documents referred to on the register can be obtained by post or electronically. The information included on a register is:
	title number of property or land
	the tenure (freehold or leasehold)
	the price paid (where available)
	the name of the registered proprietor(s)
	lease details (deed date, term, rent)
	property address, including town name
	property description (detached, flat etc)
	local authority name.
	There are over 22 million titles registered with Land Registry covering England and Wales.

Valuation Office: Land Registry

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer of 25 November 2008,  Official Report, column 1317W, on the Valuation Office: Land Registry, how much the Valuation Office Agency paid the Land Registry for access to the Land Registry Direct Service in the latest year for which figures are available.

Michael Wills: There is no charge to access Land Registry Direct. All registered users, whether public or private sector, hold a credit account and only pay for particulars that they download.

Asthma

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) children and  (b) adults were admitted to hospital due to asthma in the last five years.

Ann Keen: The Department uses information from Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) for data of this kind. HES is the national statistical data warehouse for England of the care provided by national health service hospitals and for NHS hospital patients treated elsewhere. The data are freely available from:
	www.hesonline.nhs.uk
	For hospital admissions for asthma the HES data is not broken down by age, but it is broken down into age categories of 0-14 years old and 15 plus years old for finished episodes of asthma. Note that a patient may have more than one episode for each hospital admission, which explains why episode data exceeds admission data in the following table. Data are currently only available for the five years previous to 2006-07, collected from April to April:
	
		
			   Admissions  Episodes (ages 0-14)  Episodes (ages 15 plus) 
			 2006-07 62,656 26,448 51,656 
			 2005-06 59,072 22,542 51,698 
			 2004-05 63,422 25,570 53,023 
			 2003-04 56,698 22,125 47,992 
			 2002-03 51,601 21,840 40,414

Departmental Buildings

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on works and refurbishment to offices allocated to Ministers in his Department's buildings in the last 12 months.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department has expended the sum of £13,352.62 on works and refurbishment to Ministers offices within the last 12 month period.
	The expenditure is broken down into:
	
		
			   £ 
			 Repairs to roof which caused water damage to Secretary of State's room 9,419.02 
			 Redecoration following flood damage as above 3,936.60

NHS: ICT

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff in his Department have been employed  (a) on the Connecting for Health project and  (b) in roles relating to press and public relations work on the project in each year since it was announced.

Ben Bradshaw: Available information is in the following table. For 2003-05 it relates to the national programme for information technology (NPfTT) only. On 1 April 2005 the Department's NHS Connecting for Health agency came into being. NHS Connecting for Health is responsible for delivering NPfTT, and maintaining the critical business systems previously provided to the national health service by the former NHS Information Authority.
	
		
			   Total  Media team( 1) 
			   Employees  Other  Employees  Other 
			 July 2003 80 130 n/a n/a 
			 July 2004 250 214 n/a n/a 
			 February 2005 349 301 2 0 
			 February 2006 994 460 3 0 
			 February 2007 1,119.7 566.8 4 0 
			 February 2008 933.6 392 5 6 
			 January 2009 1,098 367.9 4 1 
			 n/a = Not available (1) Staff roles allocated on a 'best fit' basis with "press and public relations" duties.  Notes: 1. Figures are for full-time equivalent staff. 'Other' includes contract and temporary staff, and secondees. 2. Because of variation in staff numbers to meet workloads over time, figures are quoted for dates for which information is readily available. Figures since February 2005 are quoted as at February for ease of year-on-year comparison.

Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he has taken to inform parents of changes to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal system; and if he will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: I have been asked to reply.
	On 3 November 2008, the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal (SENDIST) became part of the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability—SEND). It sits within the Health, Education and Social Care Chamber.
	In preparation for the move into the new tribunals structure there has been a two-part consultation process on the changes for those jurisdictions, including SENDIST: "Transforming Tribunals" discussed the proposals for a new tribunals structure and ran from 28 November 2007 to 22 February 2008; and, the "Health, Education and Social Care Chamber Rules" were consulted upon from 29 May until 11 July 2008.
	Information on draft practice directions was available on the SENDIST website in July 2008, and the draft practice directions themselves were also sent out to a wide range of service user groups, including parents, parent representative groups and local education authorities, in early October.
	Two newsletters were also issued to the service user groups; the first in July and the second in October 2008. Both contained detailed information on changes to processes and the latter addressed specific issues of concern raised by users.
	There has also been a service user group made up of representatives from a range of voluntary groups and local education authorities working with the judiciary to ensure the rules, practice direction and case management system were fit for purpose.
	Since November 2008. SEND judiciary and members of the user service group have provided free training on the rules, practice directions and case management system for 840 user and user representatives; a further 130 are booked for training in February 2009.
	In addition, application forms for appeals and claims under the new system are available on the SEND website together with guidance on how to appeal and other relevant information. A clear link has been added to the site's front page to direct users to this information. Further briefing notes on particular issues, for example, the assessment of children under rule 15 (4) ("provision to have a child assessed"), have been produced and issued to users.
	The tribunal has also provided a final list of appeal numbers for cases that will be dealt with under the SENDIST regulation, and how onward appeals from the First-Tier Tribunal's decisions will be dealt with under the new rules.

Public Services Forum Task Group

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Fareham of 17 March 2008,  Official Report, column 870W, on Warwick Task Force Group contact, what the names are of the members of the Public Services Forum Task Group; and if he will place in the Library copies of the minutes of Group meetings held in the last 12 months.

Tom Watson: The Public Services Forum Task Group was chaired by an official nominated by the Cabinet Office and attended by a further three civil servants from relevant Departments, four representatives from the CBI, private and third sector umbrella organisations and four Trades Union Congress representatives.
	The group developed the Joint Statement on Access to Skills, Trade Unions and Advice in Government Contracting, which came into effect on 15 July 2008. A copy of the Joint Statement has been placed in the Library of the House.

Trade Unions

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 
	(1)  with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Chichester of 25 February 2008,  Official Report, column 1185W, on trade unions, whether recognised trades' unions are allocated departmental office space in which to conduct trades' union work;
	(2)  with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Chichester of 27 February 2008,  Official Report, column 1619W, on trades' unions, what the Cabinet Office policy is on granting  (a) paid and  (b) unpaid time off for trades' union representatives to undertake (i) trades' union duties and (ii) political campaigning.

Tom Watson: Cabinet Office has a partnership agreement with our Departmental Trade Union Side—Public and Commercial Services Union, First Division Association and Prospect. The agreement provides the trade unions' representatives with appropriate resources, including office working space, in order to fulfil their responsibilities.
	Cabinet Office trade unions' representatives can apply to their managers for special leave to fulfil their responsibilities.

Cemeteries: Complaints

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many complaints the Local Government Ombudsman has received relating to the administration of cemeteries in the last 24 months; and how many were upheld in whole or in part.

John Healey: During the two-year period January 2007 to December 2008, the Local Government Ombudsman received 73 complaints related to cemeteries and crematoria. Of these, five were outside their jurisdiction and 21 were premature and so were referred back to the council. Of the 47 cases that were investigated, six are still waiting a decision. Of the 41 cases determined, there were no formal findings of
	maladministration, although local settlements were reached in six cases, which can be
	regarded as an acceptance of fault by the Council.

Community Centres: Valuation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 18 March 2008,  Official Report, column 962W, on community centres: valuation, how many properties there were under the category of hall and premises on the 1995 Rating Lists for England in each Government Office region in 1998 or in the most recent period for which figures are available.

John Healey: As at 1 April 1998, there were 15,851 properties described as hall and premises in the 1995 Rating Lists for England.
	
		
			  Government region  Number of hall and premises as at 1 April 1998 
			 East Midlands 1,724 
			 East of England 2,575 
			 London 1017 
			 North East 550 
			 North West 1,159 
			 South East 3,002 
			 South West 3,148 
			 West Midlands 1,453 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 1,223 
			   
			 Total 15,851

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the speech made by the Minister for Local Government to the Local Government Association on 2 July 2008, what the timetable for the review of the enforcement of council tax is; what the terms of reference of the review are; and what plans she has to introduce proposals to amend legislation in this regard.

John Healey: I announced on 2 July 2008 that I am working with the Ministry of Justice to look at new ways to collect and enforce council tax, in particular by allowing councils to transfer council tax debts from magistrates to county courts. Any necessary legislation will be introduced as parliamentary time allows.
	Annex D of the Council Tax Collection Good Practice Report of 2004, summarises good collection practice for council tax. The report is published on Communities and Local Government website at:
	www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/ctax/goodprac.pdf

Council Tax: Empty Property

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield of 31 January 2008,  Official Report, column 575W, on council tax: empty property, if she will place in the Library a copy of the final report by Roger Tym and Partners.

John Healey: I have today placed in the House Library a copy of the report, "Application of Discretionary Council Tax Powers for Empty Homes", by Roger Tym Partners in Association with Three Dragons. The report is also available on Communities and Local Government's website at:
	www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/counciltaxemptyhomes

Council Tax: Floods

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer of 16 July 2008,  Official Report , column 484 W, on council tax: floods, which local authorities have exercised their powers to grant council tax discounts to owners of uninhabitable properties.

John Healey: Pursuant to my answer of 16 July 2008,  Official Report , column 481W,on council tax: floods, I am aware that the following local authorities have exercised their power under Section 13 A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 to grant discounts to owners of properties which were still uninhabitable due to the June and July 2007 floods after the 12-month exemption period, under Class A, has lapsed.
	Bassetlaw District Council
	Cheltenham Borough Council
	Cotswold District Council
	Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council
	East Riding of Yorkshire Council
	Forest of Dean District Council
	Gloucester City Council
	Herefordshire Council
	Kingston upon Hull City Council
	Kirklees Metropolitan Borough Council
	Malvern Hills District Council
	Newark and Sherwood District Council
	North Lincolnshire Council
	North Wiltshire District Council
	Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council
	Stratford-upon-Avon District Council
	Swindon Borough Council
	Tewkesbury Borough Council
	Vale of White Horse District Council
	City of Wakefield Metropolitan District Council
	West Berkshire Council
	West Oxfordshire District Council
	Wokingham Borough Council
	Wychavon District council
	Wyre Forest District Council
	Some other local authorities affected by the floods may have exercised their power to grant discretionary discounts; the Department does not have information about them.

Council Tax: Pensions

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Tonbridge and Malling of 18 December 2008,  Official Report, columns 1045-6W, on council tax: pensions, what the  (a) monetary value and  (b) proportion was of local authority revenue expenditure that comprised employer's contributions to pension funds and other retirement benefits in each year since 1996-97.

John Healey: Information on employer's contributions to pension funds and other retirement benefits for local authorities in England for 2007-08 can be obtained from the Local Authority Revenue Expenditure and Financing England 2007-08 Final Outturn statistical release published on CLG's website at:
	http://www.local.communities.gov.Uk/finance/stats/natstats.htm#rev
	Data for earlier years, where available, can be obtained from annual editions of Local Government Financial Statistics England.

Council Tax: Tax Allowances

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 13 May 2008,  Official Report, columns 1441-2W, on council tax: tax allowances, what types of local council tax discount were awarded in 2008; and which authorities were awarding each type of discount as at 8 October 2007.

John Healey: Details of the types of local council tax discount that were being awarded by billing authorities under the Local Government Act 2003 as at 8 October 2008, the latest date for which figures are available, are listed as follows. Authorities reported they were making local council tax discounts to either individuals or a particular class of taxpayer. The discounts shown may have been awarded by one or more authority.
	 Particular classes of taxpayer or property:
	Difficult to let properties;
	Occupied and unoccupied furnished properties that do not have the benefit of mains services including beach chalets;
	Pensioners;
	Properties affected by flooding;
	Annexes that are not exempt and are part of the main residence;
	Properties that are no one person's sole or main residence where access is restricted;
	Taxpayers who can comply with the council's Mooring Policy;
	Those to whom, because they have been affected by the change in regulations since a discount was originally awarded, a discount has been awarded so as to not disadvantage them;
	Various classes of empty properties.
	 Other discretionary discounts based on individual cases:
	Hard to sell property;
	Hardship;
	New unfinished property;
	Problems with a chalk mine.
	Details of the types of local council tax discounts awarded as at 8 October 2007, and the authority awarding the discount, are shown as follows.
	 Pensioners
	Bury, Hillingdon, Kirklees, Wirral.
	 Properties affected by flooding
	Carlisle, Chelmsford, Herefordshire UA, North Tyneside, Worcester, Wyre Forest.
	 Various classes of empty properties
	Camden, Herefordshire UA
	Those to whom, because they have been affected by the change in regulations since a discount was originally awarded, a discount has been awarded so as to not disadvantage them
	Adur, Bracknell Forest, Exeter, North Norfolk, Waveney.
	The following types of local council tax discounts were also awarded as at 8 October 2007.
	A hard to sell property;
	A new unfinished property;
	A property affected by the proximity of an electricity generating wind turbine;
	A property damaged by fire;
	Difficult to let properties;
	Hardship;
	Occupied and unoccupied furnished properties that do not have the benefit of mains services including beach chalets;
	Problems with a chalk mine;
	Properties that are no one person's sole or main residence where access is restricted;
	Single occupiers who are called up for 28 days or more as members of the reserve forces;
	Taxpayers who can comply with the council's Mooring Policy;
	To a member of the RAF where redundancy was delayed owing to events abroad.
	These discounts were awarded by the following authorities. It is not possible to identify which authority awarded which discount as this may allow identification of individual properties or persons.
	Bridgnorth;
	Brighton and Hove;
	Cambridge;
	Canterbury;
	Copeland;
	East Riding of Yorkshire UA;
	Kingston upon Hull;
	Leicester UA;
	Malvern Hills;
	Oswestry;
	Purbeck;
	Restormel;
	Shepway;
	South Holland;
	South Lakeland;
	Tunbridge Wells;
	Welwyn Hatfield.

Council Tax: Valuation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Beckenham of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, column 298W, on council tax: valuation, which local authorities provide  (a) commencement notices,  (b) completion notices and  (c) plans to the Valuation Office Agency for council tax valuation purposes.

John Healey: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Standards

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many of its nine public service agreement targets from the Comprehensive Spending Review her Department has met.

John Healey: We set out the latest reporting on our SR04 Public Service Agreements in Annex A of our Autumn Performance Report, published on 28 November 2008
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/autumnperformance2008.

Deprivation Indicators

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government further to the answer of 20 November 2008,  Official Report, column 760W, on deprivation indicators, which lower layer super output areas (LSOAs) fell within the 15 per cent. most deprived wards on the Index of Multiple Deprivation in each of the principal seaside towns in England in  (a) 2004 and  (b) 2007 for each field of the Index, listed (i) alphabetically by name of the town and (ii) by most to last deprived LSOA.

John Healey: I have placed in the Library of the House a table that lists the Lower Super Output Area (LSOAs) in principal seaside towns which fall within the 15 per cent. most deprived on the Index of Multiple Deprivation for 2004 and 2007, for each domain of the index. This table lists all the LSOAs within the bottom 15 per cent. of the indices within local authority districts which are, or include, seaside towns. This table also identifies the ward in which each LSOA is located.

Energy Performance Certificates

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 19 May 2008,  Official Report, column 41 W, on energy performance certificates, how many of the home condition reports were produced with the assistance of funding provided by her Department.

Margaret Beckett: Our records show that 1487 HIPs with HCRs were subsidised as part of the first phase of the Home Information Pack area trials.

European Regional Development Fund

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Peterborough of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, column 315W, on the European Regional Development Fund, what further fines or financial corrections for programme irregularities her Department  (a) is expected to receive and  (b) has budgeted for.

John Healey: The European Commission is considering the imposition of two financial corrections in respect of ERDF programmes that operated in the late 1990s. Details are given in the Communities and Local Government Resource Accounts 2007-08 (HC791) published in July 2008.

European Regional Development Fund

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Peterborough of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, column 316W, on the European Regional Development Fund, for what reason each financial correction has been imposed; and what each of the programme irregularities was, further to the contingent liabilities referred to in her Department's accounts.

John Healey: The financial corrections imposed in 2007-08 related to the Commission's view on information and audit in relation to two English programmes.
	The Commission has not yet notified the Department of its final findings arising from audits of English programmes. Therefore it is not yet known what irregularities, if any, will need to be covered by the contingent liabilities referred to in CLG's accounts.

Housing: Low Incomes

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield of 20 November 2008,  Official Report, column 767W, on housing: low incomes, which 134 local authorities provided information via the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister; and whether authorities were required to provide the information.

John Healey: Information, which was requested rather than required, was provided by the following local authorities:
	Adur
	Arun
	Ashfield
	Barking and Dagenham
	Barnet
	Barnsley
	Barrow-in-Furness
	Basildon
	Bassetlaw
	Blaby
	Blackpool
	Bolsover
	Bracknell Forest
	Braintree
	Brent
	Bristol
	Broxbourne
	Broxtowe
	Bury
	Cambridge
	Cannock Chase
	Caradon
	Carrick
	Cheltenham
	Cherwell
	Chester-le-Street
	City of Derby
	City of York
	Colchester
	Corby
	Crawley
	Dacorum
	Darlington
	Dartford
	Daventry
	Derwentside
	Dover
	Dudley
	Easington
	East Hertfordshire
	East Riding of Yorkshire
	Epping Forest
	Fareham
	Fenland
	Forest Heath
	Gateshead
	Gedling
	Gosport
	Gravesham
	Great Yarmouth
	Greenwich
	Guildford
	Hackney
	Hammersmith and Fulham
	Harlow
	Havering
	Hyndburn
	Ipswich
	Islington
	Kettering
	Kingston upon Hull
	Kirklees
	Lancaster
	Leicester
	Lewes
	Macclesfield
	Manchester
	Mid Devon
	Newark and Sherwood
	Newham
	North Cornwall
	North East Lincolnshire
	North Kesteven
	North Lincolnshire
	North Shropshire
	North Somerset
	North Tyneside
	North West Leicestershire
	Northampton
	Norwich
	Nottingham
	Nuneaton and Bedworth
	Oadby and Wigston
	Pendle
	Plymouth
	Poole
	Preston
	Reading
	Redditch
	Rochford
	Rossendale
	Rotherham
	Rutland
	Salford
	Salisbury
	Sedgefield
	Sedgemoor
	Sefton
	Sheffield
	Shepway
	Solihull
	South Cambridgeshire
	South Gloucestershire
	South Norfolk
	South Northamptonshire
	South Tyneside
	Southend-on-Sea
	Stafford
	Stevenage
	Stoke-on-Trent
	Stroud
	Sutton
	Swindon
	Tendring
	Thanet
	Tower Hamlets
	Wakefield
	Waltham Forest
	Wansbeck
	Warwick
	Watford
	Waveney
	Waverley
	Wealden
	Wellingborough
	Welwyn Hatfield
	West Lancashire
	Westminster
	Wigan
	Winchester
	Wirral
	Woking
	Wokingham
	Wolverhampton

Housing: Sales

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 8 December 2008,  Official Report, column 24WS, on home buying and selling, whether changes were made to the text of the written statement published on her Department's website after its initial publication online.

Margaret Beckett: No changes were made.

Housing: Valuation

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 15 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1322W, on housing: valuation, whether a material change to a domestic dwelling because of a new state of disrepair may result in a change to the potential valuation of a dwelling for business rates  (a) prior to and  (b) during the 2010 revaluation.

John Healey: Domestic dwellings are not liable for business rates. A composite dwelling forms part of a domestic and non-domestic occupation, but the domestic dwelling value apportionment is banded for council tax, while the non-domestic element will appear in a rating list. All domestic dwellings, whether composite or not, are subject to the assumption they are in reasonable repair, thus a state of disrepair to the dwelling would not affect the band. This will apply to situations  (a) and  (b).

Local Government: Bank Services

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects local authorities to recover funds which they had deposited in Icelandic banks; and what proportion of those funds she expects will be recovered.

John Healey: The Government's priority has been to do everything that we can to help local authorities, along with other creditors, to get back the money which they had deposited in the banks. HM Treasury is continuing to work closely with the Icelandic authorities to ensure fair treatment for all UK depositors and creditors. The Local Government Association are co-ordinating activity on behalf of local authorities, and local authorities are representing themselves at creditors meetings.

Local Government: Pensions

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, column 343W, on local government: pensions, if she will place in the Library a copy of the report on the 2007 valuation exercise produced by each local authority pension fund.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 25 July 2008,  Official Report, column 349W.

Local Government: Public Participation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 21 February 2008,  Official Report, column 912W, on surveys, whether a report on the Place Survey pilots has been published; and if she will place in the Library a copy of the conclusions of the evaluation of the pilots.

John Healey: Two final reports, which summarise the results of two separate pilot phases, were delivered by the external authors in December 2008. I expect to publish these reports in due course on the Communities and Local Government website and will place copies in the Library of the House.

Non-Domestic Rates: Empty Property

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many non-domestic dwellings are liable for empty property business rates.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to answer given by the Minister for Housing (Mr. Iain Wright) to the hon. Member for Brent, East (Sarah Teather) on 26 November 2008,  Official Report, column 1493W.

Non-Domestic Rates: Ports

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the statement of the Minister for Local Government of 19 January 2009,  Official Report, column 600, whether changes to the ratings system of businesses in the registered ports will be revenue-neutral.

John Healey: The purpose of the review is not to raise revenue but to ensure that all rateable property pays its fair amount of rates, from the point the property should be rated, and with all businesses being treated equally.
	Individual changes in rateable values of the ports and businesses within the ports are variable; some have increased while others have decreased. I am unable to be specific about the effect on revenue, as calculation of bills and any reliefs that may be due, is a matter for individual billing authorities.

Non-Domestic Rates: Ports

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the statement of the Minister for Local Government of 19 January 2009,  Official Report, column 600, what the estimated increase in net revenue in business rates from the changes to rateable values made over the 2005 to 2009 period is; and whether the revenue was taken into account in the business rate revenue estimates prepared for the pre-Budget report 2008.

John Healey: The purpose of the review is not to raise revenue but to ensure that all rateable property pays its fair amount of rates, from the point the property should be rated, and with all businesses being treated equally.
	Individual changes in rateable values of the ports and businesses within the ports are variable; some have increased while others have decreased. I am unable to be specific about the effect on revenue, as calculation of bills and any reliefs that may be due, are matter for individual billing authorities. However, the estimated cost of the Schedule of payments policy allowing certain backdated liabilities to be spread over eight years was set out in the pre-Budget report.

Non-Domestic Rates: Ports

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the statement of the Minister for Local Government of 19 January 2009,  Official Report, column 600, whether the £9 million increase in net rateable value was set as an international objective of the change in the way in which rates on businesses in the registered ports are calculated.

John Healey: No. The intention was to ensure that all rateable property pays its fair amount of rates, from the point the property should be rated, and with all businesses being treated equally.

Non-Domestic Rates: Public Houses

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 10 January 2008,  Official Report, column 773W, on public houses: non-domestic rates, whether  (a) darts boards and  (b) pool tables will be taken into account when valuing licensed premises as part of the 2010 business rates revaluation.

John Healey: The Valuation Office Agency's Rating manual, Volume 5, Section 825 sets out the basis of valuation for licensed premises. This is available on their website at:
	www.voa.gov.uk

Non-domestic Rates: Valuation

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will place in the Library a copy of the Valuation Office Agency's documents for the 2010 rates and revaluation  (a) Urinal Cost Guidance and  (b) Pop-up Urinals—Cost Guidance.

John Healey: The Valuation Office Agency's operational instructions on the 2010 rating revaluation relating to urinals are available in the Rating Manual Volume 5 Sec 625 Practice Note 1:2010 which is published on its website
	www.voa.gov.uk

Parish Councils: Council Tax

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Beckenham of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, columns 353-54W, on parish councils: council tax, what estimate her Department has made of the average band D parish council precept for 2008-09.

John Healey: No estimate has yet been made of the average Band D parish council precept for 2008-09. A figure will be published in Local Government Financial Statistics England No 19 that is to be published later in the year.

Reposessions: Mortgages

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many applications were received for the Mortgage Rescue Scheme in December 2008, broken down by individual Fast Tracker Authority.

Margaret Beckett: The Government's Mortgage Rescue Scheme was "fast tracked" by 76 local authorities on a voluntary basis from 1 December 2008.
	An informal telephone survey of approximately half the "fast track" local authorities was conducted by officials at Communities and Local Government on 5 January 2009. This showed that up to 200 approaches had been made, resulting in approximately 80 cases meeting the eligibility criteria. We are putting in place formal monitoring arrangements from early February.
	We continue to work closely with all participating local authorities following the
	Mortgage Rescue scheme's official launch on 16 January 2009.

Valuation Office

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Hammersmith and Fulham of 4 September 2006,  Official Report, column 1681W, on Valuation Office Agency, which property attribute variables may be used in billing authorities.

John Healey: All variables which are based on property attributes, used in modelling in the Valuation Office Agency's Automated Valuation Model, may be used in billing authority areas.

Valuation Office: Databases

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many  (a) domestic and  (b) composite properties in England have an entry on the Valuation Office Agency's automated valuation model database; and how many have one or more digital photographs associated with an entry on the Agency's databases.

John Healey: The Valuation Office Agency's Automated Valuation Model is not in itself a database. The Agency's central database stores the data that feeds into its automated valuation modelling.
	The number of domestic properties in England with a live council tax band was 22,354,681 as at 30 November 2008. Of these, 832,982 had one or more digital photographs associated with them. The number of composite properties in England with a live council tax band was 284,843 as at 30 November 2008. Of these, 13,190 had one or more digital photographs associated with them.